The Lakers’ Larry Nance Jr. dunks over the Golden State Warriors Kevin Durant earlier this season at Staples Center. Nance will be participating in the All-Star slam dunk contest later this month. (Photo by Hans Gutknecht, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

NEW YORK — Larry Nance Jr. remembers that when he was a kid he would pull out VHS tapes of his father’s 1984 slam dunk contest triumph. In that grainy footage, the elder Nance cradled the ball with one hand behind his back and later dunked two balls.

Iconic though those jams might be, Nance Jr. knows that 34 years later, winning the dunk contest at All-Star Weekend later this month at Staples Center will require a few more frills.

“It’s less about the dunk and more about the showmanship at this point,” said Nance, whose participation was announced Thursday. “It’s all about what can you bring out, who can you bring out. It’s more about the lead up and the story and the showmanship.”

Nance, far from a showy player by nature, might have his work cut out for him on that front.

“I hate it,” he said, “but at the same time … I’ve got to get out of my comfort zone a little bit. That’s something that the NBA and whoever I have helping me is going to help me out with.”

It’s hard to imagine Nance participating in a dunk contest without honoring his father in some way, but whether that is wearing a throwback Phoenix Suns jersey or dunking two balls, he isn’t tipping his hand.

“We’ll have to see,” he said after arriving at Barclays Center wearing a T-shirt bearing his father’s likeness.

Lakers coach Luke Walton understands trying to follow in the footsteps of a superstar father, and said the dunk contest would be special for Nance Jr.

“Larry’s obviously living his own career,” Walton said. “He’s doing his own thing but there’s always something special when you get to do what your father did.”

Nance had hoped to participate in the dunk contest his first two seasons in the league, but he was injured when invitations were extended.

That has given him plenty of time to think about the dunks he hopes to achieve in the contest, and he said he’s all set.

“The ideas have been brewing since I got into the league,” Nance said. “I wanted to do it my first year, couldn’t. Second year, couldn’t. So I’ve been sitting on some in my back pocket for a while now, and I’m just excited that everybody gets to see them now.”

WHAT’S YOUR NAME, MAN?

The magnum opus of writer and composer Lin Manuel-Miranda, “Hamilton” won 11 Tony Awards, the Pulitzer Prize and is considered one of the greatest cultural contributions of the decade.

It remains, nearly three years after debuting on Broadway, the toughest ticket in town. A negative review is hard to find.

Enter Kyle Kuzma.

“I liked the Lion King better,” the rookie said, after the entire Lakers team took in a performance Thursday night at the Richard Rodgers Theater.

Kuzma caught the stage adaptation of the Disney classic, the third-longest running show in Broadway history, when the Lakers were in New York in November to face the Knicks. He said the 1998 Tony winner for Best Musical did not disappoint.

“I just liked it better,” he said. “I think everything about it was.”

Despite favoring Simba over the first Secretary of the Treasury and, perhaps, finding Scar a more convincing villain than Aaron Burr, Kuzma said he found “Hamilton” entertaining. And he thinks Miranda is on to something by retelling history through hip hop music.

“History class in school was kind of boring because they just kind of talked it and went through every which angle,” Kuzma said. “If we would have learned history like that it probably would have been a lot (more fun).”

Taking the Lakers to see the Broadway smash as a team-building activity was the brainchild of General Manager Rob Pelinka, who saw the show over the summer at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood. When the titular character sings, “I’m young, scrappy and hungry,” the words resonated with Pelinka.

“I thought, ‘Man that is sort of the identity of our Lakers team going into this season,” he said before the start of the season. “We’re young, we’re scrappy and we’re hungry. When teams face us they’re going to see a new level of competition.”

Walton did not join his players at the theater, having already caught ti in L.A., but he said the reviews from the Lakers were generally favorable.

“The players I talked to all enjoyed it,” he said. “They were really impressed with the cast and just the whole storytelling of the play. … Said the leg room wasn’t great, but they really enjoyed the show.”

TOUGH ACT TO FOLLOW

The Nets honored Brook Lopez with a video tribute between the first and second quarters Friday, a night that marked his first game in Brooklyn since being traded to the Lakers for D’Angelo Russell in June.

Lopez watched the entire video, then raised his arm in appreciation for the standing ovation he received. The Nets’ career leader in points with 10,444, Lopez averaged 18.6 points and 7.1 rebounds over nine seasons in New Jersey and Brooklyn.

The video also paid tribute to his community service.

“I’ll try to hold it together,” Lopez said before the game. “I’m a pretty stoic fella, but I’m not expecting much. It’s enough for me just to get to see everyone again and take time to chat with everyone. It’s really special to come back and see everyone.”

Bill Oram covers the Los Angeles Lakers for the Southern California News Group. He covered the Utah Jazz for the Salt Lake Tribune. He is the (usually) bearded guy in the background wearing a University of Montana hat.

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